Clutch wear
-
- Senior Standardshifter
- Posts: 101
- Joined: Tue Jan 12, 2016 12:27 am
- Cars: 2016 WRX 6MT
Clutch wear
Hi, I'm now 5000 miles in with driving a standard and am light years from where I was 6 months ago when I bought the subie. Only question I have now is how much wear can a typical clutch take? I don't race, hard launch or stuff like that. My 1-2 shifts still aren't the smoothest out there(slight buck every time I shift, stupid rev hang). I'm just curious if I should be worried about the clutch failing before 100k miles or so if it's not always perfect shifts. Thanks
- potownrob
- Master Standardshifter
- Posts: 7833
- Joined: Sun Jun 05, 2005 11:35 pm
- Cars: '17 CX-5 GT
- Location: Dutchess County
Re: Clutch wear
Unless you are either adding a good amount of gas while letting out the clutch, or you're letting out the clutch very slowly, it is unlikely you are putting a lot of wear on the clutch. Whether it will last 100k miles or not is hard to say and will depend on several factors. Botched upshifts aren't going to cause much if any extra wear. I wouldn't worry much about it.
ClutchFork wrote:...So I started carrying a stick of firewood with me and that became my parking brake.
-
- Senior Standardshifter
- Posts: 101
- Joined: Tue Jan 12, 2016 12:27 am
- Cars: 2016 WRX 6MT
Re: Clutch wear
Thanks rob. I'm not shooting a lot of throttle when I up shift. I feather it while up shifting and actually I should probably add some more to my 1-2 shifts in hindsight.
Re: Clutch wear
Yeah, sounds like you're fine from the basic description. The clutch is designed to wear - but after a certain period of time, it's a bit of a crapshoot on whether it will last 75,000 miles, or 150,000 miles. Basically, a long time, unless you're driving quite a bit.Ewilon1988 wrote:Thanks rob. I'm not shooting a lot of throttle when I up shift. I feather it while up shifting and actually I should probably add some more to my 1-2 shifts in hindsight.
'15 Mazda 3 iSport Hatch 6MT
'11 Ford Fiesta Hatchback SE 5MT
'14 Giant Escape City 24MT
'97 Honda Civic EX 4AT - Retired @ 184,001 mi
For Pony!
'11 Ford Fiesta Hatchback SE 5MT
'14 Giant Escape City 24MT
'97 Honda Civic EX 4AT - Retired @ 184,001 mi
For Pony!
-
- Senior Standardshifter
- Posts: 101
- Joined: Tue Jan 12, 2016 12:27 am
- Cars: 2016 WRX 6MT
Re: Clutch wear
Yeah I'm not really driving quite a bit. I went and interviewed for a job today that's an extra 25 miles away from me but it's through New Orleans so it's a lot of stop and go and red lights so I think that's where the anxiety is setting in. If I get the job I'll have to make that kind of commute daily.
-
- Master Standardshifter
- Posts: 4029
- Joined: Tue Apr 26, 2011 9:04 pm
- Cars: 17 Mazda6 To, 18 Mazda3 i
- Location: Shakopee, MN
Re: Clutch wear
Worry about it not. My brother is the definition of abusive and the last car he had with a manual died with 250k on the clock (120k of which were his in 6 years). He never bothered with smoothness or being unabusive, or even trying to revmatch.Ewilon1988 wrote:Yeah I'm not really driving quite a bit. I went and interviewed for a job today that's an extra 25 miles away from me but it's through New Orleans so it's a lot of stop and go and red lights so I think that's where the anxiety is setting in. If I get the job I'll have to make that kind of commute daily.
Re: Clutch wear
These are the stories that I love hearing because I too have a bit of anxiety and wondering what kind of condition I'm in also. My commute didn't greatly increase in terms of mileage (only about 2-3 miles added each way to what I was originally doing for years) but my door to door and traffic conditions greatly changed. I pretty much doubled over my door to door and I've been shuffling 1st and 2nd gear the most I've ever with this car. I rarely have any stints where I can break 25 mph for longer then 3 seconds and these are highways that are speed limited to 55 but during normal hours have people regularly going 65-70. If I had any anxiety about driving stick before, it's surely subsided now.tankinbeans wrote:Worry about it not. My brother is the definition of abusive and the last car he had with a manual died with 250k on the clock (120k of which were his in 6 years). He never bothered with smoothness or being unabusive, or even trying to revmatch.Ewilon1988 wrote:Yeah I'm not really driving quite a bit. I went and interviewed for a job today that's an extra 25 miles away from me but it's through New Orleans so it's a lot of stop and go and red lights so I think that's where the anxiety is setting in. If I get the job I'll have to make that kind of commute daily.
- potownrob
- Master Standardshifter
- Posts: 7833
- Joined: Sun Jun 05, 2005 11:35 pm
- Cars: '17 CX-5 GT
- Location: Dutchess County
Re: Clutch wear
If you want to worry about something, worry about your launches and downshifts. Upshifts in general are not going to put much wear on the clutch as long as you aren't powershifting.Ewilon1988 wrote:Yeah I'm not really driving quite a bit. I went and interviewed for a job today that's an extra 25 miles away from me but it's through New Orleans so it's a lot of stop and go and red lights so I think that's where the anxiety is setting in. If I get the job I'll have to make that kind of commute daily.
ClutchFork wrote:...So I started carrying a stick of firewood with me and that became my parking brake.
-
- Senior Standardshifter
- Posts: 101
- Joined: Tue Jan 12, 2016 12:27 am
- Cars: 2016 WRX 6MT
Re: Clutch wear
Launches aren't terrible. My downshifts are getting better. I do struggle with downshifting to second though. I blip for the others but second gear I normally feather the throttle because it works a bit better than blipping.
-
- Master Standardshifter
- Posts: 11615
- Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2009 3:44 pm
- Cars: '08 Jeep Liberty
- Location: Greater Detroit Area
Re: Clutch wear
potownrob wrote: If you want to worry about something,....
Pick Me! Pick Me!
'08 Jeep Liberty 6-Speed MT - "Last of the Mohicans"
Re: Clutch wear
I also recommend putting your car in neutral at stop lights or when stopped for an extended period of time. That will reduce the wear on the clutch. Not a ton of miles, but my Element is at 104,000 with the original clutch.
Bill Berckman
West Chester, Ohio
2007 Honda Element EX AWD 5 Speed MT
West Chester, Ohio
2007 Honda Element EX AWD 5 Speed MT
-
- Moderator
- Posts: 3418
- Joined: Wed Jun 11, 2003 5:01 pm
- Location: OK, USA
Re: Clutch wear
If your clutch is properly adjusted and you're flooring the pedal, that shouldn't directly affect the clutch itself, but there would likely be some extra wear to the throwout bearing, which still requires a clutch job. My truck had just had a clutch replacement when I got it with 120k on it, but it became apparent they hadn't done everything while they were in there when the pilot bearing ate itself at 162k.
-
- Senior Standardshifter
- Posts: 101
- Joined: Tue Jan 12, 2016 12:27 am
- Cars: 2016 WRX 6MT
Re: Clutch wear
I was taught from the beginning to take my foot off the clutch while driving and at stops so luckily I didn't have those bad habits.
- theholycow
- Master Standardshifter
- Posts: 16021
- Joined: Tue Jun 24, 2008 1:36 pm
- Cars: '80 Buick LeSabre 4.1 5MT
- Location: Glocester, RI
- Contact:
Re: Clutch wear
The clutch is made for its job. It's not going to crap itself just because you're learning. People learn and even become sloppy half-assed drivers and get plenty of life from a clutch, never needing to replace it. Then some people do end up needing to replace it, sure, maybe because they were abuse, or very sloppy, or because a zillion miles or a bad route or just bad luck.
Don't worry about normal driving that most people would think is reasonable, even if you're learning and just can't seem to get the hang of doing it well. Don't put it in neutral at a red light that you expect to be green quickly either; holding up traffic trying to launch is stressful enough without the additional delay of being out of gear and off the clutch pedal. Same goes for an unknown light where you can't see when the other traffic gets their yellow light.
Do avoid driving like a rich kid 17 year old racer wannabe. Do shift to neutral at a known long red light, and any light where you can see the cross-traffic's light and declutch/shift into 1st when theirs is yellow.
Don't worry about normal driving that most people would think is reasonable, even if you're learning and just can't seem to get the hang of doing it well. Don't put it in neutral at a red light that you expect to be green quickly either; holding up traffic trying to launch is stressful enough without the additional delay of being out of gear and off the clutch pedal. Same goes for an unknown light where you can't see when the other traffic gets their yellow light.
Do avoid driving like a rich kid 17 year old racer wannabe. Do shift to neutral at a known long red light, and any light where you can see the cross-traffic's light and declutch/shift into 1st when theirs is yellow.
1980 Buick LeSabre 4.1L 5MT
Put your car in your sig!
Learn to launch/FAQs/lugging/misused terms: meta-sig
Put your car in your sig!
Learn to launch/FAQs/lugging/misused terms: meta-sig
watkins wrote:Humans have rear-biased AWD. Cows have 4WD
-
- Senior Standardshifter
- Posts: 101
- Joined: Tue Jan 12, 2016 12:27 am
- Cars: 2016 WRX 6MT
Re: Clutch wear
I'm happy to hear that Cow. I do almost all of the good things that you say. If I know I'm going to be a light for awhile it goes in neutral. I might own a sports car but I don't drive it like a jackass. I'm 27 and am not rich lol. I buy everything with my own money so I learned the value of a dollar a long time ago which is why I just wanted to make sure I'm not creating bad habits while driving